Who’s Got Your Back?
Choose a connector that can stand up to the highest demands
Whether it involves providing more sophisticated sensing,
detection, and analyzing equipment, or providing new or
replacement connectors and assemblies to nuclear power plants,
the world of CBNR is highly dependent on the connector
manufacturer. Their ability to supply high quality, ruggedized
connectors and assemblies to this growing market allows even the
most pessimistic of us to feel more secure. more
Customized Interconnects for
Harsh Environments
Hypertac and Radiall prove that there is indeed a substantial
market for custom-designed connectors, and that a company can
build its growth strategy on this particular market for
custom-designed interconnect solutions.
more
Vroom, Vroom: The 2010 Army
Vehicle Programs
The U.S. Department of Defense is busy repairing, expanding, and
improving its fleet of combat and support vehicles. Here are the
numbers. more
Power Contacts/Connectors, Part
II: Current Concerns.
Understand the different properties of each current type to make
a good connector choice—and avoid a meltdown. more
Learn From the Best Engineer in the Business Congratulations
to Dr. Howard Johnson of Signal Consulting Inc. He was voted
“best engineer” by our readers.
I asked Dr. Johnson if he had any advice for young engineers. He
did: “Students often ask me, ‘What classes should I take?’ or
‘What subjects should I study?’ My answer comes in several
parts. First, if you want to go into engineering, take some
math. Take more than you think you will need. Next, take some
accounting. You will need that to figure out where all the money
goes in your first startup.
“Then get a mentor. This step is the hardest, but the most
important. Start by looking at people you know well. Then expand
your scope to teachers, friends, and distant acquaintances. You
are looking for people who truly love their job.
“Few people in the world find a career they love. Those lucky
few are hardy, adventurous, risk-taking people. They master a
craft, and then—this is the good part—they pass that knowledge
onto others.
“One such person is Bob Pease, the famous analog guru at
National Semiconductor®. Bob’s work at National, his magazine
columns, and outstanding book Troubleshooting Analog Circuits
inspire me greatly. When I admire someone’s work, I try to find
out what makes him or her tick.
“In 1996, I met Mr. Pease for lunch in the National cafeteria.
Bob greeted me and led the way to a quiet table by the window.
We discussed transistor physics, electro-optical conversion, and
the increasing use of simulators for circuit design. Then he
stopped, looked directly in my eyes, and explained why I should
write regular columns for a magazine. Beyond the general
responsibility shared by all engineers to pass along what they
know, he said, ‘Writing a regular column teaches you something
new every month, and that is a good thing.’ With his
encouragement, I did just that. My early writing assignments led
to my position today as EDN columnist for Signal
Integrity, and finally to the
many other books and publications I have written.
“There you go. One meeting—one word of advice—changed my whole
career. Thank you, Bob.”
If you have a desire to write and share your engineering ideas
and experiences, email atanghe@connectorsupplier.com.
Focus On: Dr.-Ing. Kurt Woelfl ODU
has built a reputation for very high quality products and great
customer service. Customers rate ODU as one of the best
connector companies in the world. Impressively, the company
places near the top of our customer surveys year after year. ODU
is best known for strong engineering that can deliver custom
interconnect solutions in the industrial and medical market
sectors. It’s a growing and profitable connector company
positioned well in these high-margin markets.
Dr. Kurt Woefl is leading this company exceptionally well by
continuing to emphasize engineering and new product development
during the worse downturn in connector industry history. ODU has
become one of the best-run companies in the industry under Dr.
Woefl’s leadership. It is a perfect example of how a small
company with great engineering can succeed against large, global
competitors. As an industry observer, we are very proud this
company is part of the connector industry.
–-Ronald E. Bishop, Bishop & Associates Inc.
Name:
Dr.-Ing. Kurt Woelfl
Company location: Headquarters
are in Mühldorf, Germany
Current position: President and
CEO of ODU Group
Previous industry positions: In the aerospace
and automotive markets, from a young and inexperienced engineer
to plant manager.
Accomplishments you’re proud of: Balancing
family (wife and three kids) and work, and keeping ODU
fundamentally and financially independent and sound, even
through the tough times.
First job: Construction
work in the California desert.
Favorite website: Yahoo. At one
site I can get a quick overview of what is happening around the
world.
The last book I read: Sharpe’s
Eagle
by Bernhard Cornwell. For me, reading is a great way to wind
down and separate myself from everything that’s going on.
If I knew then what I know now, I would have: Done pretty
much the same.
The best advice anyone ever gave me was: Don’t sweat
the small stuff. Great advice, but sometimes not so easy to do.
What trend in the industry is affecting your job and what would
you like to do about it? The continued
internationalization of manufacturing. Our customers are moving
further away from our traditional bases in Europe and the U.S.
At ODU, we thrive on servicing our customers, and now we have to
be able to do that on a global scale. We are working to solidify
and expand our position in Asia and other emerging markets.
And the winner is... Hu
JianHua (Snower Hu),
a connector procurement engineer at IBM in Shenzhen, China.
Thanks, and congratulations.
Question from ConnectorSupplier.com
Volume 6, Issue 5:
In
what year did the General Conference on Weights and Measures
adopt the term hertz (Hz) to replace the previous cycles per
second (CPS)? In what country was Hertz born? And, what is he
best known for?
Answer:The
General Conference on Weights and Measures adopted the term
hertz in 1960. Heinrich Rudolf Hertz was born in Germany, and is
best known for his work with electromagnetic waves.
Trivia Question for ConnectorSupplier.com Volume 6, Issue 6:
This connector has a strong locking mechanism that can only be
released by squeezing the connector body. What is the name of
this type of connector, and what companies manufacture it?
Provide us with an interesting trivia question related to the
connector world, and if we use it, we’ll send you $50. If you
know the answer to this issue’s question, you could also win
$50.
The State of the VME Technology Industry
Ray
Alderman, the executive director of VITA, gives you his candid
perspective on the state of the VME technology industry and a
general view of the board industry for 2010. Alderman reviews
application markets, current and new technology, mergers and
acquisitions, and forecasts that impact VITA and its members.
more
● Positronic’s
PosiBand Contact Receives AS39029 Approval
more
● TTI
Acquires Interconnect and LED Distributor Net-Aye Technologies
more
● Heilind
Adds Tyco Electronics’ Corcom Ultra-Compact Power Filters
more
● element14
Launches Electronics Technology Store for U.S. Market
more
● Avnet
and Tyco Electronics Release Free Pluggable I/O Solutions Kit
more
● Molex
Sockets for Servers, Desktops, and Notebooks Earn Intel
Validation more
● Arrow
Named Again to FORTUNE’s World’s Most Admired Companies more
● Allied
Electronics Launches Redesigned Website with Enhanced Search more
● TTI
Inc. Announces 2009 Winners of the Supplier Excellence Awards
more
● AIC
Names Lighthouse Technical Sales as Manufacturers Rep more
● PEI
Genesis Opens 14th North American Branch and Launches New
Website more
● Wago
Offers Industrial Control Customer Training more
● Sabritec
Appoints Scott Pianalto as President
more
●Amphenol
Harsh Environment Connector Housings Push the Limits
more
●Yamaichi
microSD Card Reader for Vertical Mating Positionmore
●ODU Offers
Efficient Assembly with MAC LC Modules for PCB Terminationmore
●ITT’s
Plastic Circular Connectors Deployed in Wheeled Armored Vehiclesmore
●Samtec’s
PowerStrip/10 Interconnects Offer High Power in a Small Packagemore
●SUYIN´s
SMT Mini USB Receptacle Offers More Space for Small Chipsmore
●Ironwood
Electronics’ Multi GHz Bandwidth Universal Socketmore
Connector Fundamentals
April 26 and 27
and
Power Connector/Contact Fundamentals April 28 and 29
Spring Seminars
Location Colonel Blackinton Inn
Attleboro, Mass.
Tom Peel, of Contech Research Inc., and Dr. Bob Mroczkowski,
of connNtext associates, announce their Spring Connector
Seminar Series. Two seminars will be presented, Connector
Fundamentals and Power Connector/Contact Fundamentals.
Connector Fundamentals will be offered April 26 and 27, and
Power Connector/Contact Fundamentals on April 28 and 29. For
further information on the seminar content, contact: